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Five Years After Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico Store Associate Coral Gonzalez Shares Seeds of Sustainability

September 15, 2022

Bridges and other infrastructure were wiped out. Debris from landslides blocked roads. Hurricane Maria, a powerful category 5 hurricane, made landfall as the strongest storm to impact Puerto Rico in over 90 years, devastating a significant portion of the island. Facing months with no water and no electricity at their home, newlyweds Coral Gonzalez and her husband moved in with her mother. 

On the island of Puerto Rico, more than 80% of food is imported. Food shortages in the aftermath of the storm were shocking. “We didn’t see how big a problem it was in Puerto Rico until then,” Coral recalls. “And we thought we could do something more, to be more self-sufficient and sustainable.”  

The family began working her grandfather’s land to survive. The grounds were overgrown and needed a lot of cultivation.